


Waiting for Next Thursday

by So_Ginelle



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Based on an idea from the show House, Crushes, Cute, Developing Relationship, Drama, Fluff, Fluffy, Friendship, I am bad with tagging if you couldn't tell, M/M, New Relationship, Romance, This is probably one of the fluffiest ideas I have had for a chapter fic, This isn't a song fic finally, Thursdays, Unrequited Crush, Unrequited Love
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-04
Updated: 2020-03-23
Packaged: 2020-06-07 18:54:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 13,759
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19475254
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/So_Ginelle/pseuds/So_Ginelle
Summary: Bokuto Koutarou, the volleyball ace and team captain of Fukurodani, has unexpectedly developed a crush on his team's setter, Akaashi Keiji. This is all very new to Bokuto, so he knew he was doomed. When Kuroo, his best friend, tells Bokuto not to worry and to keep trying with Akaashi after he is rejected, things start to get a little crazy and Akaashi is left not knowing what to think. All he can do is wait for the following Thursday to see what happens next.





	1. Week One

**Author's Note:**

> Hey hey hey! Welcome! This is going to be a very new fic for me, and this is going to be a very big struggle for me to write, because it is _pure fluff and all cute_. I do love the ship BokuAka, and this idea came to me and it just seemed to fit with them. So please, be kind to my fluff. This is new for me, so I have to try my best. I have friends of mine helping out, and I will introduce them to you in the next chapters.
> 
> Thank you for the read though! Please enjoy and comment if you want!

"Akaashi? Hey! I'm glad you stayed after like I asked! Thanks. So like... There is something I’ve wanted to tell you. This is real hard. Usually, you know I don't have an issue with talking. Anyway... So uh... I wanted to uh... I wanted to tell you that... You are great and I am falling for you. I really like you and I think that maybe we should try dating."

\----------

_Flash back to a few days ago_

"Bro, I think I'm defective or something," Bokuto said as he rubbed at his chest. He made a weird face and shook his head, trying to get rid of some sort of feeling inside of himself that was very unwelcomed and it had been sticking around for a few days. If he really had thought about it, he would have realized that this feeling had been growing for more than just a few days. It had been growing for a year now. It was becoming debilitating and it felt like a weight on his chest that caused him to not be able to breathe. He had to do something about it, or he was likely to go insane.

With a raised eyebrow, Kuroo leaned back in his chair and tilted his head a bit. His bangs flew into his face a little more, but he didn't seem to mind as he continued to give Bokuto a confused expression. "You're not defective. Is... something wrong?" Kuroo asked before he turned his eyes down to his notebook.

The two boys were in Kuroo's apartment, just sitting there in Kuroo's room and watching their notebooks. They were supposed to be doing homework, but neither of them were really focused on the work currently, because they usually had too much fun and ended up horsing around too much to really care about their homework. So it was pointless to focus on it when the real fun was about to begin. They always regretted not at least trying to get the homework done, but it was always worth it. Though, Bokuto did come inside a little more glum than normal, so their normal antics hadn't started up yet. They were usually messing around by now and literally laying on the floor because they couldn't breathe from laughing so hard.

When Bokuto looked at Kuroo, he dropped his hand away from his chest and shook his head a bit. "I am though. There's something going on in my chest, and it only happens when... when I'm around Akaashi, or when I'm thinking about him. But the problem is, I'm always thinking about him, so the feeling doesn't go away. Bro, what's wrong with me?" Bokuto asked in a whine, because this feeling was a little uncomfortable. He really needed to know what was going on inside of him. This feeling was certainly not welcomed.

After a few moments of Kuroo just staring at Bokuto, his face started to stretch into a wicked grin. This was where the real fun began, Kuroo thought, and he was ready for their antics to start. Now, Kuroo had a feeling that Bokuto wasn’t joking about not knowing what was going on, but Kuroo began to wonder. Did Bokuto really not know what was going on? Did he really not know that he had a crush on Akaashi? Had the boy never felt this way before? Kuroo was really going to have fun with this. "Bo, there's nothing wrong with you. Tell me though, what kind of things are you thinking about when you have this feeling?" Kuroo asked, trying to get more information to try to help his friend out more. He was going to tease, absolutely, because Bokuto couldn't get away with anything without being teased by Kuroo. But Kuroo would still try to help.

There was nothing Kuroo could do with the little knowledge he had about this situation though. He had to know more in order to help his bro out. So, that was what he tried to do. He was trying to get more knowledge and see where all of this information was taking him. What Kuroo really needed was a way to get into Bokuto’s brain. Something told Kuroo though that he really didn’t want to be in Bokuto’s brain for too long, because it always seemed to be a mess, but sometimes a little peek might not be too bad. "Are you thinking about him specifically? Are you thinking about things he does? Do you have something else you think about when you think of him?" Kuroo asked, as if he was a therapist or a life coach or something. It was rather comical to think of Kuroo as a therapist, since he had so many problems in his life as it was and was probably the worst one to analyze someone else. But he was just trying to help, and Bokuto knew that.

With a bit of thinking, Bokuto let out a large sigh and he threw himself back onto Kuroo's large bed. "It's everything! I think about how he looks, I think about how he smiles to me or how he is always thinking, I think about how kind he is... I even try to think about him getting mad at times, and even then, the feeling doesn't get negative and it still... it makes my heart hurt!" Bokuto whined and he started to let out whimpering sobs. They weren’t real tears or crying, but Bokuto was feeling a lot right now, and Kuroo understood that.

After hearing all of this, Kuroo nodded and he let out a hum, pretending to ponder the situation. He really didn't have to think about it, because he knew exactly what was going on with Bokuto. He knew exactly what the boy was having issues with. "It sounds like to me... you might have a bit of a crush on him. You might want him to be more than just a friend, maybe?" Kuroo offered, trying his best not to smirk and laugh at this situation. Just the fact that Bokuto didn't understand that these feelings were a crush and a longing for a relationship made him even more of a dumbass and a precious idiot than he already was before. He really was still an idiot though, and Kuroo loved him for it. It was part of the reason they were such good friends, because the two of them could be idiots together.

The look on Bokuto's face was stress, and Kuroo couldn't help but laugh and finally give into the teasing bit. He was whining about all of this and Kuroo could tell right then that Bokuto had wanted this for a while now, he just didn't realize it. "Oh... is that what... is that what this is? It's a crush? Bro, this is bad..." Bokuto said, and Kuroo snorted because he just couldn't help it.

After gaining his composure, Kuroo smiled. "No, this isn't a bad thing! It's completely natural!" Kuroo couldn't help but laugh a bit more. This was such a Bokuto thing. Kuroo should have seen it coming. “So you like him, what’s wrong with that? People have crushes all the time. This is so totally normal, bro,” Kuroo said with a roll of his eyes.

"It might be, but I still don't know what to do about it! It's not like I can just ask him to be my boyfriend! I... Wow, the thought of Akaashi actually being my _boyfriend_. That's... wow." Bokuto sat up and he rubbed at his chest again, as if it was starting to get painful and he wasn't sure what to do about it. Was there really anything to be done about it, he wondered?

"Why can't you?" Kuroo questioned, raising an eyebrow.

It took Bokuto a moment to consider what Kuroo had said. "I... Because he would never say yes? I don't even know how to ask him if I were to try..." Bokuto said with a bit of a grumble. "What should I do about this? How do I make this go away?"

Kuroo tapped his finger on his lips as he thought about the situation, and he looked at Bokuto before removing his finger. "Well, you never know. He could say yes. You will never know if you don't try, right? Why don't you go and talk to him about how you feel? See how... things go from there?" Kuroo offered up. He wanted to see his best friend happy, and if he could do that this way, then he was certainly going to try. “There’s no reason for you to just make it disappear when it could turn into something great.”

It wasn't that Bokuto wasn't happy. Hell, he was the happiest boy that Kuroo had ever seen, and he was almost constantly cheerful about something. Kuroo knew the boy was just a cheerful spirit and he was almost constantly in a good mood. So when Kuroo saw him like this, he knew he had to do something about it. This wasn't natural.

Bokuto let out a sigh and he dropped his head. "But how do I do this? I don't know how to. What if he turns me down? I don't think I can face him or the team if he were to turn me down, bro..." Bokuto had pressed his hands to his face and he slumped over.

This was starting to become a bit of a problem for Kuroo, and he just wanted to be there for his friend. He just didn't know exactly how to help him and he wanted to come up with the best solution. "Bo, listen. You won't know if you don't try. Don't you want to be happy with him? It's possible that he could say that he likes you too and he wants to try to date you just as much. You will never know if you don't try," Kuroo said.

That was a very good point, Bokuto thought. What if Akaashi actually wanted to be in a relationship as much as Bokuto wanted? He really would never know until he tried. "So... how do I do it?" Bokuto asked in a low tone, as if he were getting more serious.

It was good that he wanted to finally try to figure all of this out. Kuroo wasn't always the most trustworthy when it came to advice, because he was known for giving really bad advice sometimes. At least, that was what Kenma thought. It was probably true.

"I think you should just be straight forward about it, Bokuto. Do it after practice one day, so it's just the two of you talking about all of this, and you two can just talk it all out. That's really all that has to happen. If you talk and he doesn't seem interested in you, then you will have your answer. But if you talk and he seems interested, that is a different story and you could end up with your own happily ever after!" Kuroo cheered as he rolled over in his chair and smiled to Bokuto.

There wasn't exactly a smile on Bokuto's face, but he was more focused now and Kuroo had a feeling that Bokuto was going to be okay after all of this. He wasn't sure why, but Kuroo felt like Akaashi could possibly have a crush on Bokuto as well. "So, what do I do? Should I just... tell him how I feel? Ask him to go on a date with me?" Bokuto asked, looking up to Kuroo for a moment. He needed to know just how to do this, so he knew how to avoid messing it all up. This had to go as smoothly as possible.

With a hum, Kuroo nodded. "Talk to him after practice and tell him how you feel. Tell him how much you like him, and then tell him that you've been thinking about going on a date with him. He needs to know what’s going on, because he’s not a mind reader," Kuroo said as he leaned back in his chair and he looked over Bokuto. Everything was going to be okay. Kuroo had a feeling, and even though he was almost always wrong, Kuroo was pretty sure this feeling wasn't wrong.

\----------

_Flash forward to the present_

The air was still. There was noise going on in the gym as their other teammates went to the locker room to go change, but it was pretty quiet from where they were standing on the other side of the gym. Of course, there was tension in the air that Bokuto knew he needed to cut at some point, but he had to give Akaashi the chance to respond. He had to give Akaashi time to think about all of this. He was panicking about everything going on. From one of the other boys possibly coming to interrupt them, to something disastrous happening to Akaashi.

Bokuto's mind was racing.

With a look of pure surprise on Akaashi's face, Bokuto wasn't sure what to think. Was this good? Was it a good expression of surprise that was on Akaashi's features right now? All Bokuto could do was be hopeful. That was all he had right now. Akaashi’s were so wide and unblinking. They were focused on Bokuto’s features, and it felt like the boy was trying to get a read on Bokuto. He was used to Akaashi looking at him like this, but not in this particular situation. Now he felt that he was in the spotlight.

That was when Akaashi looked down, and Bokuto could no longer see his face. Akaashi let out a bit of a sigh, and now Bokuto was beginning to think that maybe his surprised expression wasn't so good. "Bokuto-san..." Akaashi said in hardly more than a whisper. This was going to be heartbreaking, Bokuto had a feeling. This was a talk that Bokuto was not ready to hear.

Curse Kuroo for being so optimistic about this.

"Bokuto, I appreciate that you told me. I appreciate knowing this. But, as we are on a team together, are you sure it would be a good idea to get involved? I'm not so sure it would be a great idea, because we wouldn't want to throw the team off... Our team dynamic is really good as it is. Do you want to risk throwing all of that off?" Akaashi asked. He finally raised his eyes to look at Bokuto and make eye contact, and there was something in his eyes that screamed dejection.

It was like a knife had been unsheathed and had sunk into Koutarou’s gut. Bokuto felt both nausea and physical pain from this. His brain was also going a bit insane about the thought, and it wasn't sure what to do and how to rid himself of these emotions. "Oh... I guess I didn't think about it like that. Maybe you're right... maybe we shouldn't date so we don't ruin the team dynamic... It's a really good team as it is, so I don't want to mess anything up. You're right," Bokuto said as he let his gaze fall away from Akaashi, and he licked his lips a bit. He was glad that practice was over and he didn't have to stick around any longer. As much as Bokuto liked to be the last one to leave, he wasn't sure he could see Akaashi's look of pity anymore. His eyes were so sad while they looked at Bokuto.

"But I appreciate you telling me still! Thank you, Bo. Now that I know, it will bring us closer together," Akaashi said as he turned and went towards the locker room so he could go grab his stuff. Bokuto watched him go, and when he disappeared into the locker room, Bokuto sighed and he went towards the door. This was more miserable than he thought it was going to be. This wasn't even supposed to happen this way. But it did, sadly, and there was nothing Bokuto could do about it. He didn’t think he could even manage to go grab his stuff, which was why he figured he could just leave it in the locker room overnight. He could get it in the morning and rush through a homework assignment he was already going to fail anyway.

But that wasn’t important. The lesson to be learned here today was that Akaashi had no interest in dating him, and Bokuto had been turned down. The lesson was that love hurts and Bokuto shouldn’t get his hopes up about things.

He would tell Kuroo about all that happened. Now that he had been turned down by the man of his dreams, Bokuto wasn't so sure that he could handle this rejection alone. He wasn't sure he wanted to handle it all alone, either.

Bokuto sent a message to Kuroo and asked him if he could come home after his team finished practice. He was sure Kuroo wouldn't mind, but Bokuto just wanted to get home and cry about all of this.

Finally, after walking home at a slow pace so he could think about things, Bokuto let out a groan. He was hopeful that all of this would go well, but none of this went the way that Bokuto was hoping it would. None of this was right anymore, and he just needed to forget that it ever happened.

It was a failure, so what good could come from any of this ever? It was depressing to think about, honestly. Bokuto was turned down on the first time he asked someone to go on a date. It was really sad that he had never asked someone on a date before, but it was even worse that he got rejected on the first time. If that wasn't an ego-crusher, Bokuto wasn't sure what was.

As Bokuto got inside his house, he wasn't surprised to see that Kuroo wasn't there yet. He knew that Kuroo would come over after practice, but Bokuto just wanted his best friend to be there already. He just wanted his best friend there so he could talk about all of this and get it over with. He needed a cry.

It was probably two hours later that Kuroo had let himself into Bokuto's room. Kuroo had been saying something to Bokuto's mom right then, and he let out a laugh before he stepped into Bokuto's room and he was wearing a curious expression. "So, tell me how it went?" Kuroo asked as went to take a seat next to Bokuto and threw an arm around his shoulders. "Did you go slowly like I suggested in a text earlier? Not all rambles like you usually talk?" Kuroo asked, not giving Bokuto a chance to speak. It was really important that he got the chance to speak like he wanted or needed to. It was very unfortunate the way that things had turned out today, but it was how it was, he supposed.

A look of despair was written on Bokuto's face, and Kuroo tensed up a bit. He could tell right then that Bokuto wasn't in a very good mood, and this meant that things likely didn't go well. When Bokuto got sad, it activated his emo mode, and it meant that Bokuto was going to turn into a very sad and depressed Bokuto very soon. "Yeah, I did..." Bokuto murmured and he dropped his head, not looking up to Kuroo.

How could Bokuto face him? Kuroo was so excited for this. Kuroo wanted this to happen so he could see his best friend be happier. But it didn't happen and this whole thing failed in Bokuto's eyes. It really was a fail, honestly, and Bokuto wasn't sure how he could recover from this.

There was a problem, though.

Bokuto still liked Akaashi. It didn't make his feelings lessen. It didn't stop the uncomfortable beating in his chest. He still wanted Akaashi, and he was sure that he always would want more at this rate. "I'm guessing that it didn't go so well if you're as bummed as you are," Kuroo said with a sigh, moving his arm to rub up and down Bokuto's back to try to soothe him.

"No... and Akaashi brought up a good point, really. He said that what we had going was good, or something, and he didn't want to mess up the dynamic of the team. Like... I don't know, honestly. Would he and I being in a relationship really mess things up? Or would it just make our relationship stronger and we would work even better together?" Bokuto asked and he finally raised his head.

Pesky little tears started to form in Bokuto's eyes. They hurt. They stung, and he wanted them to be gone. Kuroo wished he could make them disappear and make all of this go away.

It was kind of his fault that all of this happened the way it did, after all.

Taking a breath, Kuroo thought for a moment. "He is right, it could mess with the dynamic of the team. But it could also make your team stronger, so he wasn't completely correct. Akaashi is a smart boy, so I'm surprised he didn't think about it that way. He wasn't so smart this time around," Kuroo murmured and he huffed out some irritation.

There was a look on Bokuto's face right then and he scoffed to Kuroo. "Don't you go and criticize Akaashi like that! He was completely right! He doesn't want to take the risk of messing up the team, and I don't blame him! I should respect his decision about this and I should just-"

"No, don't say it. Don't say that you're going to give up," Kuroo said as he pulled his arm away from Bokuto and narrowed his eyes a bit. "You can't give up on him. You can't give up on the two of you potentially being in a relationship. Bro, it is the best feeling, especially when it's with the right person. And Akaashi is absolutely the right person for you," Kuroo said as he watched Bokuto's expression.

Bokuto paused for a moment, and he groaned. "How do you know he's the right person for me though? He could just as well be the wrong person and I'm chasing the wrong one!" Bokuto said as he threw his arms up.

With a raised eyebrow, Kuroo shook his head. How could Bokuto not see how good Akaashi would be for him? How could Bokuto not be sure about this? Kuroo certainly was sure. "Let's see... Well, he gets you out of your emo mood... he makes you smile and laugh, he keeps you on track of your homework, and he is a great setter for you! He knows how to read your emotions and expressions, he knows what to do to make your day better... Bro, he would be an awesome person for you!"

When Kuroo said all of this, Bokuto frowned a little bit. Was Akaashi really that good of a choice for Bokuto? He supposed that if his feelings didn't die when he was told no by Akaashi, that it really meant that they could be good together. Or, it just meant that Bokuto was desperate and wanted Akaashi more than he realized. "I don't know, man... But it's not even like I can approach him about all of this again, because he already turned me down. So how would I even bring it back up with him? How would... How could I even try to talk him into this? It might not have been meant to be..." Bokuto mumbled as he slumped back down and dropped his head again, his eyes forming more tears than he wanted them to.

That was when Kuroo rolled his eyes and he stood up to stretch. Bokuto could see Kuroo's stomach when he stretched, which Bokuto smirked at. Kuroo saw the look on Bokuto's face, and he wondered how long it took Bokuto to realize that he was gay. Kuroo had never heard Bokuto say that he was gay before, but he was pretty sure that he was. Maybe he was bi, or maybe he was on the ace spectrum. Kuroo really didn't know and he really wasn’t focused on that bit. But what he did know what that Bokuto really shouldn't give up on Akaashi, because he liked Akaashi and they would be a great couple. "Did he say he doesn't like you back?" Kuroo asked, putting his hands on his hips.

After a few moments of thought, Bokuto huffed a bit. "No, he didn't! He just talked about how it would mess up the team dynamic!" he said with a bit of frustration. But maybe this was a really good thing, because if Akaashi didn't say he didn't like Bokuto, he could actually really like him, which would be a really good thing. Bokuto would be thrilled with all of that. So maybe, just maybe, there was still hope.

Kuroo nodded and he smiled a bit. "He might still like you, Bo. You never know. He could just be trying to keep the team together and I understand that he doesn't want to mess up the team dynamic that you all have going, but if you two get together and it works out really well, then there is no messing this all up and the team would be better than ever! So, you have to keep trying until he tells you to stop," Kuroo said and he watched Bokuto.

With a bit of a sigh, Bokuto shook his head. "So... what? I just keep asking him until he says yes?" Bokuto asked with a raised eyebrow, not sure how he needed to approach any of this. He was doing his best to try to see this in a different light, because maybe he didn’t have to let this all go yet. Perhaps he could hold onto this for a little longer and see what happened.

Humming, Kuroo shook his head. "You need to be more romantic about it, bro. Akaashi isn't just someone you want to sleep with and move on from. He's someone you want a real relationship with. You have to tell him how you feel with more than just words. Words are good too, but make more romantic gestures, and just keep trying."

Bokuto seemed to be thinking for a moment and not really taking in everything that Kuroo was saying. Kuroo didn't like where this was going, and he had a feeling that Bokuto was twisting Kuroo's words to mean something else right now. "So I have to keep telling him how I feel," Bokuto said, trying to make sense of any of this. He was formulating his next plan at the moment.

With a bit of a sigh, Kuroo bit his lip. "You should keep trying, definitely don't give up. I would say... make romantic gestures weekly to tell him how you feel, that way he can see just how good of a guy you are," Kuroo said as he eyed Bokuto. He had a feeling this was going to go so wrong. He had a feeling that Bokuto wasn't quite understanding what needed to be done. But, Kuroo couldn't do anything other than give the best advice he possibly could. If Bokuto didn’t grasp this, what else could he do to help?

After a moment, Bokuto nodded and he looked up at Kuroo with a smile. "Weekly is how often I need to do this?" Bokuto asked, standing up. He seemed to have a bit more bounce to his step at the moment, and Bokuto seemed to be a bit more cheerful. This was what Kuroo was looking for.

All of this was bound to blow up in Kuroo's face, but he nodded to his best friend. "Yes. Weekly, show him how you feel. When he sees how great of a person you truly are, he won't be able to turn you down," Kuroo said.

It was a good thing that Bokuto was happier though, so if Kuroo could do anything to keep Bokuto happy like this, he would do it to make everything better. It might not be sound advice, and he might get yelled at by Kenma for suggesting that Bokuto do something else that could be potentially annoying, but it was worth getting yelled at for Bokuto's happiness.

Everything was worth it when it came to Bo. Honestly, Bokuto was hoping that Akaashi would see it the same way eventually. He would have to say yes, wouldn't he? He would have to make this all work, because Bokuto was a good guy, and Bokuto wouldn't quit. He was ready to start telling Akaashi just how much he liked him on a weekly basis. Now, to only wait for the next Thursday.


	2. Week Two

"Oh, hey Akaashi! I just wanted to remind you on this rainy Thursday that I really like you and I think we should date. But so anyway, how are you?"

\----------

_After Bokuto's initial confession, things seemed to be normal. Bokuto didn't seem to be acting any differently around Akaashi, even after what he had said. Maybe it had just been an odd moment? Maybe it was just something that needed to pass?_

_If Bokuto had been concealing his feelings, he was doing a very good job of doing so. Akaashi couldn't exactly get a read on him being any different. So maybe this was all going to blow over soon?_

_To Akaashi, every little conversation had felt like a flirt for the first couple of days. Though, wasn't this exactly how Bokuto behaved on a normal basis? There was really nothing different about the way Bokuto was behaving, was there?_

_Maybe Akaashi was just seeing something that wasn't there. Whatever it was, Akaashi didn't want to ruin their friendship. So he hoped that things were going to go back to normal._

_Though, knowing Bokuto, that was wishful thinking on Akaashi's part._

_Akaashi desperately didn't want anything to change between them. Their friendship was the best, so if anything were to change, Akaashi wasn't sure how he would go on. Hopefully, things wouldn't change._

_Akaashi could only hope._

\----------

The air stilled in the hall way as Akaashi took his shoes out of his locker and put his school slips back into the locker. His hand froze on his water bottle and he stared ahead, not bothering to look over at Bokuto.

That was odd, wasn't it? What was wrong with Akaashi? Was he not okay? Bokuto sure hoped that Akaashi was okay and there wasn't something wrong. He would feel really bad if there was actually something wrong and he didn't know what it was. Bokuto tried to be perceptive to everyone's feelings. The way the space between them seemed so distant and tense at the same time told Bokuto that something wasn't right.

Watching as Akaashi finally pulled the water bottle out of his locker, Bokuto thought that maybe things were actually okay! The look on Akaashi's face didn't change, but he finally looked over at Bokuto. The way he looked could knock Bokuto off his feet if he were looking for his face in a crowd. His smooth skin, his dark hair and the way it was styled on his head always impressed Bokuto.

But the most impressive thing to Bokuto about Akaashi was his eyes. Akaashi had the most impressive eyes he had ever seen. They were a deep, gunmetal blue. They were piercing and were always so sharp. His eyes were always watching, always being analytical and trying to determine the best way to approach the next move or play while on the court. Bokuto could get lost in Akaashi's eyes, and he would be lying if he had ever said that he hadn't before. His eyes were just gorgeous, in Bokuto's opinion.

Right now, though, Akaashi's eyes were talking to Bokuto. They were telling Bokuto everything that he needed to know. It seemed that Akaashi was being a little cautious about something. He was nervous, or unsure of something. Bokuto had spent so much time studying Akaashi's eyes, so of course he would know what the look in his face had meant. "I... know? You already told me how you feel. But anyway, um... I'm... fine. I mean, I'm a little stressed about my IT test tomorrow, because there's just something about IT that doesn't really sit right with me and doesn't quite click. But everything is going okay otherwise. How... are you, Bokuto-san?" Akaashi asked. It seemed as though Akaashi were speaking with caution, as though he were still testing his words and didn't trust himself. Did Bokuto do this?

Hearing the honorific caused Bokuto to cringe a bit, but he tried not to let it show as Akaashi closed up his locker and seemed to have turned his attention from Bokuto. The two boys walked towards the exit to the courtyard so they could get across to practice. It was so rainy outside that they were going to have to run across the lawn if they had any hope of staying somewhat dry. "I'm alright. But I'm sorry about your test! You're smart though. Smarter than I am, anyway. I still struggle with long division and the concept of there being _letters_ involved in math," Bokuto said with one of his booming laughs.

As they opened up the door to the courtyard, the two boys jogged across the courtyard to the gym, trying their best to get inside and out of the rain. With the way it was down pouring, there was no way they were avoiding becoming at least a little damp. Once they got inside, Akaashi took a breath and looked at Bokuto. He wiped the water from his face and arms before he shrugged a bit. "Yeah, I could help you with that if you needed the help, but... I mean, you've been managing so far, right?" Akaashi asked.

To Bokuto, Akaashi didn't seem to be entirely invested in this conversation. He seemed very distant, as though he were looking at Bokuto through an exhibit glass. "Oh, yeah! I can manage. Though, I might take you up on that offer at some point! Let's go get changed, yeah?" Bokuto asked as he motioned to the locker room. Their teammates were already starting to pile in, each of them complaining about the rain and they seemed to be dripping. That was never a good thing, especially if they had to be on the court with the potential hazard of slipping because of the water on the ground.

There was a bit of a pause in Akaashi, and he glanced over at Bokuto. "Yeah, we can go get changed," he said as he adjusted his jacket and the bag over his shoulder. Bokuto thought he was standing a bit more stiffly than usual, which was odd. But he didn't have time to focus on that bit as their teammates came over to Bokuto and seemed to pull him away. Bokuto didn't want to be pulled away from their setter, but he would be pulled away if he needed to be, as he was the team captain. He had other responsibilities to tend to right now.

Bokuto's mind didn't seem to want to focus on his team responsibilities right now though. It was really a problem, as his mind was being bombarded with thoughts about Akaashi. Didn't Kuroo say that he needed to keep this up and keep on reminding Akaashi weekly about his feelings? Now Kuroo was wondering how long it would take Akaashi to come around. That was what Kuroo had implied, at least, that Akaashi was going to eventually come around and would agree to dating Bokuto.

But it had only been a week, so could Bokuto really be _that_ impatient? He was never the best at being patient about anything, but for Akaashi, he would definitely try his hardest to be patient. That was all that anyone could ask of him, right? Being impatient was not the way to go about this, anyway, and Akaashi would just become more annoyed with him. So he would just have to wait and continue to have blind faith in his friend about this.

As they got into the locker room with all of their friends and teammates, Bokuto couldn't help but notice that Akaashi seemed to be quieter and more reserved than normal. Everyone had seemed to be trying to get Akaashi to talk about something, and the setter seemed to just be very dismissive of them and wave them off. Everyone understood that he might not be in a very good mood, so the team didn't go on in trying to bother him about anything. He was, after all, a very important player to their team. They were all important, but Akaashi controlled the game.

When everyone else started to depart from the locker room, Bokuto noticed that Akaashi had stayed back and stayed seated on one of the benches. He was fidgeting with one of his shoe laces, and he was just staring down at it. This was rather strange of Akaashi, and Bokuto didn't like it one bit. "Hey there, vice captain Akaashi. Are you coming? We can't really start practice without our setter. You're also the brain of the team. I guess Anahori could sub in to be setter, but we could really use-"

"Please stop..." Akaashi said as he pinched the bridge of his nose. This was definitely not normal for Akaashi, so what was going on? Was he really that stressed about his IT test tomorrow? Or was it something else that was bothering him? He was really tensed and he seemed so out of sorts right now. Bokuto couldn't help but worry about him. He cared so much about the team, particularly Akaashi. "I will be out, okay? I just... need a minute to myself," he said as he stood up. Akaashi didn't turn to look at Bokuto and he decided to walk himself to the bathroom part of the locker room. The next thing Bokuto knew, Akaashi had turned on a faucet and was running water. Bokuto couldn't see what was happening, but maybe he was just washing his hands.

This had completely thrown Bokuto for a loop. At the same time though, he understood that everyone needed their space at times. He just didn't understand what was wrong and what would warrant needing space right this very moment. Usually, everyone knew what was wrong with Bokuto. He was an open book and everyone could read him. He himself needed space at times, when one of his moods hit him and things became too overwhelming.

To give Akaashi his space, Bokuto left the locker room and went out into the gym to join their teammates in helping to set up the net for practice before their coach got there.

Helping Komi with one side of the net, they got it secured and he stood back as the rest of the team huddled up. "What did you do to Akaashi? Man, poor boy seems out of it today," Komi said as he put his hands on his hips.

Hearing what Komi had said, Bokuto's jaw hung open and he stared ahead at their libero. Clicking his tongue and tilting his head, Bokuto was nearly ready to cuff the boy across the back of the head. How presumptuous of him to assume that Bokuto had done something to him! Gathering his thoughts and shaking his head just a bit, Bokuto gritted his teeth and narrowed his eyes at the libero. "I didn't do anything to him! Komi, he's just stressed about his IT test tomorrow! That's all it is!" Bokuto hated the thought of anyone even thinking that Bokuto had the ability to cause any harm to Akaashi. That was literally impossible. Bokuto couldn't hurt a _fly_ if he tried. He struggled in biology to do dissections, even though the creatures were already dead.

It was then that Komi put up his hand and let out a laugh. Bokuto knew that Komi wasn't looking for a fight, but he seemed to be riling Bokuto up a whole lot right then. That was when Akaashi came out of the locker room and he went to the storage room to pull out their volleyballs. Bokuto watched the way Akaashi was walking, as though he were still hesitant about something. This wasn't good, was it? Their team setter couldn't be hesitant. Their setter had to be confident about his movements and he had to be the control center of the team. But if Akaashi was off about anything, the whole team was going to be off.

This wasn't going to be good.

But Bokuto couldn't focus on that, as their coach had walked in and asked the team to gather up. Once everyone had come over, he had given the team a couple of drills to do for warm up before they began their practice. It was just a few laps and some stretches. Bokuto had watched Akaashi while doing so, and the boy seemed to limber up a bit. So maybe, this would be a good sign.

"Okay, that's good for warm ups. Let's set up a few drills for setting. Akaashi and Anahori, we will toss you some different balls, and it will get the two of you to set to a team player of your choice. We want the setters to get used to having to approach the sets from different ways. Alright! Let's get going!" The coach stood back and went to the net, standing with one of the team managers and talking with him.

Once they were split up onto different sides, the managers started to toss balls to the setters, and the setters had to find the best place to approach them from. They then had to choose someone in that split second to set to. Bokuto wondered just how setters could do this. Their sense of the game had to be incredible to be able to do things like this. Bokuto was put on Akaashi's side for this drill, so Bokuto was ready for Akaashi to set to him and to get the spike over the net.

It seemed like a year had passed before Akaashi was told to set to Bokuto. Watching Akaashi for a moment, Bokuto could see the boy tense up as the ball came toward him. Akaashi _hesitated_ , which was very unlike him. Due to the hesitation, his set was a little further from the net than what anyone had expected. Bokuto was still able to get it over with ease, but the power in his spike wasn't as strong as normal. "Okay, we'll try that again," said the manager.

As they got reset, Bokuto went to go run up for another spike. He was trusting Akaashi. Right before he jumped though, Bokuto saw Akaashi miss the ball completely. The ball fell to the ground and rolled to one of their other teammates. "Akaashi? Are you okay? It's unlike you to miss a ball," the manager said.

When Akaashi looked over, he winced and rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah, I know. I'm sorry. Can I just... have a minute?" Akaashi asked and Bokuto frowned slightly. Something really was wrong with Akaashi. Bokuto could tell, and it seemed to be more than just the IT test.

"Yeah, go take a drink for a bit. We're changing drills in just a minute anyway," said the manager. Bokuto watched as Akaashi walked over to the side of the court and reached for his water bottle. The boy hated this. There was really nothing that Bokuto could do about any of this? It was a bit saddening to know that something was wrong with Akaashi, and Bokuto couldn't do anything to help.

Bokuto's mind was too wrapped up in his own things at the moment anyway, so he wasn't too confident that he would be able to keep on focusing on Akaashi. Practice was too involved that day, so his mind didn't have any time to wander.

By the end of practice, they were told to huddle up again so they could be told what they were going to work on the next time. Bokuto went to go stand next to Akaashi. The boy have Bokuto a side glance, and he inched away from Bokuto to put a little space between them. Bokuto hadn't picked up on that fact, which was good, but a couple of their teammates had, so it caused their to be a little bit too much chatter going on in the gym at the moment. "Alright, so for tomorrow, we're going to go over our blocking techniques and refine those. We will also work on our jumping heights and strengths tomorrow. Good practice today. See you all tomorrow," Said the coach before everyone dispersed to the locker room to go get changed.

As Bokuto followed after Akaashi, he clapped the boy on the back. "Wow, what a great practice, Akaashi! Don't you think? I've always loved practice," said Bokuto. Akaashi didn't even bother to look at Bokuto and he just went to go get his stuff from his locker. "Okay, I'll see you tomorrow!" Bokuto cheered. There was a slight cringe to Akaashi at the time, and the boy simply stared ahead to his locker, pulling things out.

This new attitude of Akaashi's was throwing Bokuto off, and it was honestly something he didn't think he would be able to get used to. Every other day, Akaashi seemed fine. But today, he was acting so differently. Was it because Bokuto had said what he had earlier? Bokuto didn't want to think so, but maybe that was really all it was. If so, Bokuto was in trouble. He didn't like the fact that Akaashi's mood changed whenever Bokuto had admitted how he felt. But he had to keep this up so Akaashi would eventually come to terms with this and start to like Bokuto back!

Wasn't that how Kuroo said it would work?

Bokuto was used to walking with Akaashi to the bus station, but the boy was already too far ahead to catch up. Bokuto could sprint, but he would probably slip once he got outside. So he just walked alone, being bummed and holding his head down as he went.

As he walked, there was a boy, standing under one of the bus stop awnings and laughing as he waved to the Fukurodani team. It didn't take Bokuto more than a moment to recognize who the odd figure was with dark hair that went in every which way. The rest of the team seemed confused that the Nekoma captain had come to hang out by their school right after their practice. Bokuto only noticed that Kuroo wasn't wearing his gym clothes, so he hadn't come straight from practice. There's no way he would have changed to get to Bokuto in time. "Bokuto and Kuroo have a bromance. Leave the two of them alone," said someone from Bokuto's team. It caused Bokuto to laugh and he stepped under the awning to stay dry. It wasn't pouring as hard, but it was still enough to deflate Bokuto's hair a little.

"Hey man, what're you doing here?" Bokuto asked as he bumped into Kuroo's shoulder.

Looking over, Kuroo's smile grew tenfold and he threw his arm around Bokuto's shoulder. "Hey bro! Just wanted to come see how your day was going! How was everything today?" Kuroo asked. Though, there was something devious and scheming in Kuroo's eyes. Bokuto had known Kuroo long enough to know when he was looking for some specific information.

Letting out a sigh, Bokuto shrugged Kuroo's arm off of his and he shook his head. "If you're looking for tips on how to defeat us, you can forget it. Fuku is going all the way this year, and I'll be sure of it!" Bokuto said as he raised his head in pride.

That was when Kuroo started to laugh, and he put his hands on his hips. "No, man, I wasn't talking about your practice. We don't need to cheat to take you lot on. We can do it on our own," Kuroo said, his eyes twinkling a bit.

Bokuto grumbled under his breath and looked out at the rain. "So what _are_ you doing out here, then?" Bokuto asked. The two boys were waiting for the bus. Kuroo had come all the way out here, so what in the world was he out here for? Bokuto wanted to know. Sure, the two of them never really needed a reason to see each other, but there had to be _something_.

As they got onto the bus, Kuroo sat next to Bokuto and looked at him. "I already told you! I want to know how today went, bro. How was your day?" Kuroo asked. He eyed Bokuto with that devious look in his eyes. Bokuto was wondering what exactly Kuroo was getting at, or if there was some sort of ulterior motive here.

Thinking for a moment, Bokuto shrugged. "It was fine I guess. Practice went well and everyone seemed to be really focused today. School sucked, but I've always hated school," Bokuto said. His shoulders slumped a little bit, and his eyes traveled to his bag, trying not to look at the look on his friend’s face. He really didn’t need to know that Kuroo was still scheming for something or another.

“Well man, I’m sorry to hear that school sucked. But I’m glad practice went well! How was the rest of your day, though?” Kuroo asked. Bokuto couldn’t see the eyes that Kuroo was giving to him, but he could sure feel the way his pupils drilled into Bokuto’s skin. It was unnerving.

Finally, Bokuto looked up to Kuroo and saw the way his face still seemed to be dancing with danger and plotting something. “It was fine, like I said. I’m bummed about school, because I don’t think I’ll be able to get into University. I’ll probably end up as a construction worker or a garbage man, so that’s that,” Bokuto mumbled before he shook his head and stared out the window. The rain was coming to an end, which was good for Kuroo if he planned on walking home.

Letting out a sigh, Kuroo put his hand on Bokuto’s shoulder. “You can always get a sport scholarship and play for a school team. You are in the top five aces of the country, so I’m sure a school will want to snap you up and will want to work with whatever you can do academically.” There was a pause in Kuroo. It seemed like he was letting Bokuto take in what he had said, before he moved on. “But anyway, that wasn’t exactly what I was talking about. Did you do anything else today? Like, I don’t know, talk to a certain someone?” Kuroo asked.

Sometimes, it was difficult for Bokuto to catch on. Sometimes, he really did needed it spelled out for him and laid out so he knew exactly what was going on. He wasn’t the sharpest tool in the tool shed at times, though what he lacked in skill, he made up with this constant enthusiasm. “Did I talk to…? I’m still not sure what you mean-… Oh.” It hit Bokuto like a volleyball to the back of the head. It hit Bokuto hard and he finally knew what Kuroo was talking about. He wanted to know if Bokuto had talked to Akaashi. “Yeah, I did. But bro, it didn’t work out like you said it would. I told him I liked him like you told me to, and he just kind of brushed it off. And… he was off for the rest of the day, too. I don’t know if it was from what I said, but I don’t like seeing him like that.”

With a bit of a sad mixture of laugh and whining, Kuroo squeezed Bokuto’s shoulder before letting it go. “You tried. What did you try though? Did you ask him out or give him chocolates or something?” Kuroo asked as he tilted his head back and looked up to the ceiling of the bus.

That was when Bokuto made a face. “I… just told him I liked him. You told me I just had to be persistent with it and he would eventually come around and start to see things like I do,” Bokuto said, eyeing Kuroo and judging just how this conversation was going to turn out.

Gawking at Bokuto, Kuroo blinked at him and sat up straight, turning more towards Bokuto. “Wait, so you mean to tell me that you didn’t do anything differently? You just… told him you liked him again? No romantic gestures or anything?” Kuroo asked, his eyes widening at Bokuto.

“No, I didn’t do any of that. I just told him I liked him like you told me to, and I went on about my day. What, was that not right?” Bokuto asked, starting to get a little worried about all of this. Was Bokuto going to start making Akaashi hate him? He would not like for that to happen, above anything else.

The air between them stilled. It seemed like the bus was silent, and everything had frozen. Apparently, he really had screwed up. “Oh, Bo… that’s not going to win him over. That’s not going to work. You can’t just keep telling him that you like him over and over again. It will get creepy. I mean, yeah, remind him that you like him, but you have to do something about your crush on him. Get him something he likes, or make some kind of romantic gesture to show him that you really care and you’re really looking out for him. Just telling him you like him isn’t going to be enough.”

“But you said—“

“I know what I said, I just didn’t think you’d interpret it so wrong. But it’s only one lost week, that’s okay. You can still win him over. We just… have to figure out what you can do to get his attention,” Kuroo said as he rubbed his chin, as if he were thinking. If he really were thinking, he would have realized that Bokuto was going to do this anyway. But he honestly hadn’t realized that what he had said only got through to Bokuto halfway. The other half had gotten lost in the wording, probably. “Oh, I got it!” Kuroo said.

Bokuto narrowed his gaze at Kuroo. “Haven’t you already helped enough?” Bokuto asked sharply as his eyes looked out the window. He crossed his arms over his chest, pouting a bit and not bothering to look at his friend. He knew that he wasn’t always the smartest. He knew that he didn’t always comprehend simple things. But he really didn’t need to be teased and made a joke of by his best friend.

A sigh escaped Kuroo’s lips and he pat Bokuto’s thigh. “Man, I’m sorry. I thought you knew what I meant when I said those things. But I promise I will stop assuming that you knew what I meant and I will make sure you actually know the next time, okay? I just want to help. I think you and Akaashi make a great couple. So let’s work this out, okay?”

That was when Bokuto's eyes seemed to slip down and his posture sagged forward. "Just... tell me, Kuroo. How long do I have to do this for?" he asked, looking up to his friend with such a pathetic gaze.

Taking a breath, Kuroo squeezed Bokuto's thigh. "As long as it takes, bro. As long as it takes."


	3. Week Three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's only been 4 months... that's fine, right?
> 
> Well, thank Covid-19 for this update, because I'm literally stuck home until all of this is over. (: I hope all of you are keeping safe and sane through all of this. Expect a few more updates coming soon. I do have a few new projects, but I promise to keep up with my current fics too. I love you all!!

**Bo (09:24AM):**  
_Hey_

**Bo (09:24AM):**  
_So_

**Bo (09:25AM):**  
_It's Thursday again_

**Bo (09:26AM):**  
_and I'm home sick which is dumb but I am_

 **Bo (09:27AM):**  
_I wanted to remind you that I like you and I think we should date_

**Bo (09:28AM):**  
_But anyway do you think you can handle running practice today without me? I trust you to work those owls like I do but coach might just take over_

Bokuto looked over the last text one more time before he hit send, not exactly expecting Akaashi to respond back until at least his lunch time, if he did respond at all. But he sent the text and he leaned back in his bed, pulling the blankets back up over his body to conserve his body heat. He knew that he really needed to cool down, since he had a fever, but the fever was making him cold. He took in a deep breath and he sighed after, beginning to cough while he reached for a tissue. Bokuto felt _miserable_ in bed. He hated this. This was the actual worst, he thought. But he would get through it. Another day in bed would probably do him some good, anyway.

Being in bed was something that Bokuto was not good at. He hated staying still. He hated doing _nothing_. But his mother wouldn't let him go do anything that was too strenuous. So, to his dismay, Bokuto was stuck in bed and he had no chance of going anywhere or doing anything that he might actually enjoy. It was just a cold, but she was pretty serious about him getting better and staying in his room. Bokuto knew his coach appreciated it, as he needed to be back at full strength for his volleyball matches.

Looking at the time and groaning to himself, Bokuto tried to turn on his television to find something to distract him from the time. He did his best to distract himself and focus on something that wasn't missing practice or missing seeing Akaashi again. But as he flipped through the channels, nothing seemed to be catching his attention. Not even the cartoons he usually liked was doing anything for him.

It was going to be a long day in bed.

After a few minutes of just sitting in bed, Bokuto groaned and started to hack once more before he reached for his phone. There had to be something he could do, didn’t there?

As Bokuto scrolled through his messages, he looked at the top few. Of course, Akaashi was on top. Below that had been his team’s group chat that he had messaged to say that he was going to be missing practice today. But after that was someone he knew would respond to him. A smile crossed his face as he opened the conversation and started to text.

Kuroo was in class. Kuroo shouldn't be texting. But Bokuto was bored, and he really had no idea what else to do right now. He wasn't going to just sit in bed and do nothing. He had thought of maybe revising the team training schedule, but he also thought that it would cause him to think about Akaashi, so he decided against that fairly quickly.

So Bokuto just continued to compose a text to Kuroo.

**Brokuto (10:14AM):**  
_Hey bro. I'm home sick. I am so boredddddd!!!_

Bokuto stared at his phone for another minute or so before he groaned and threw his head back. What was he going to do? If even his best friend wouldn’t reply to him, this was going to be a hopeless day.

That was when his phone vibrated, causing Bokuto to jump a bit and grab for his phone on his chest. He knew he could always count on Kuroo. Why did he ever doubt him?

**TetsuBro (10:18AM):**  
_Aw man I'm sorry bro! I can text with you. I'm in class tho so my responses will be slow._

Bokuto smiled and he started to text Kuroo back.

**Brokuto (10:19AM):**  
_That ok!! I just don't want to suffer in bed alone any longer. If I sit here alone I think about Akaashi and I don't wanna think about him._

**TetsuBro (10:21AM):**  
_Still crushing pretty hard on him, huh?_

Bokuto groaned as he read that text from Kuroo. Of course he was crushing on him hard. Why wouldn't he be? Kuroo was crazy if he thought Bokuto wasn't crushing on him very hard. Although, Bokuto wished he wasn't crushing on him. Maybe Kuroo could do something to help him with that.

**Brokuto (08:22AM):**  
_Yeah man! I can't stop thinking about him. It's the worst! I mean I really like him but I am always thinking about his smile and the way he laughs and how to make him happy. It's a curse I swear._

Bokuto threw his head back and cursed to himself as he winced forward and rubbed the back of his skull. He threw his head back far enough to bash against his wall, which was his own fault, but he was still cursing to himself.

His phone buzzed again after a few moments and Bokuto peeked at his phone once again.

**TetsuBro (10:28AM):**  
_Bro come see me after my practice. We can talk then about Akaashi ok?_

Bokuto groaned gently to himself and he sighed gently. Was it really a good idea to go see Kuroo? Did he really want to get more advice that was going to lead him further down this path with Akaashi? He wanted Kuroo to help him forget, not talk about him.

He didn't see another option, so Bokuto reached for a tissue and blew his nose before he started to text Kuroo again.

**Brokuto (10:30AM):**  
_Ok bro. Text me when you're done with practice and I'll come to your house_

Bokuto took a breath and he sniffled gently, hoping that he would be feeling better after a little while, simply because he didn't want to feel sick while he went to go see Kuroo. But either way, he would get his mom to take him to Kuroo's house. They didn't have school the following day because of reasons Bokuto really didn't care about, so maybe his mom would let him stay the night. Likely not, but it was worth a shot.

So Bokuto was going to rest up as best as he could and he was going to do his best to feel better. That was the only way he was going to convince his mother of letting him go over to Kuroo's house, anyway. She was fairly strict on where he went and what he was doing while he was sick, but hopefully she would cut him a little slack. He was sick, not dying. She was also rather lenient when it came to Kuroo, so Bokuto was hoping that he could use that to his advantage.

After his day of cleaning his room and not leaving for anything other than soup and using the bathroom, he came to the dining room to find his mom, in hopes that he could beg her to let him go to see Kuroo. It took a bit of argument and a lot of convincing, but Bokuto did in fact convince his mom to let him go see his friend.

The only way she would let him go, though, was if he wore a mask out of the house and while he was at Kuroo's place. So once Kuroo text him about his practice being over, Bokuto grabbed his mask and his mother drove him to Kuroo's house.

Bokuto didn't even knock on the door before it was pulled open and he was ushered inside. He didn’t get a change to even wave to his mom before the door was closed, but she was pretty used to it by now. That was just how their relationship and she seemed to understand. At the very least, he had never thought to say anything about it and she hadn’t yelled at them for the behavior.

It seemed that Kuroo's dad was busy in his office, so they had the rest of the apartment to themselves for now. Letting himself go to sit on the couch, he groaned as he took off his mask. "No, bro, put that back on. I love you, but I'm not catching your germs," Kuroo said as he put his hands up in a fake attempt to ward off Bokuto's supposed germs. Bokuto forgot how anxious Kuroo could get about germs. It didn’t make much sense to Bokuto, but that was Kuroo. Raising an eyebrow, Bokuto hesitated before he put his mask back on. He guessed that he would just have to deal with it.   
  
"Fine, fine. Let's get playing something, I've been bored all day, man," Bokuto said as he sighed and reached for the television remote. He switched the input of the system and reached for a game controller before Kuroo came over to sit next to him.

"I guess we can do that. Kenma will want to join us, anyway. He's coming over in a few minutes," Kuroo said as he reached for the second controller. "We were supposed to talk about Akaashi, you know. Didn't you want to talk about all those things you're feeling for him?"

"No man! I wanted to forget about all of that stuff and I need to get over this crush, because it's not going to happen. I keep trying with him, but he just doesn't respond and he pretends like I never said anything. Maybe it would be best if I just forgot about this whole crush thing," Bokuto said in a huff as he chose his character in the game.

With a frown, Kuroo looked at Bokuto. "Bro, that's not healthy. He never actually told you that he wouldn't, right? He just said it was a bad idea because of the team. So... you just have to make him think it's a _good_ idea," Kuroo said as he chose his own character.

Bokuto groaned, completely muffled through the mask and he shook his head. "But bro, what if really doesn't like me like that and I'm just making things worse?" Bokuto asked before their race started and he shifted uncomfortably in his seat. He really hated that he was thinking about all of this right now, because he came over to Kuroo's house to _forget_ about his troubles with Akaashi. “I don’t want to lose our friendship completely…”

"Bo, if you don't convince him it's a good idea before the end of the year, then your chances are over and you've had this crush for nothing. You could even lose your friendship at that point. Is that what you want? Don't you want to date him?" Kuroo asked Bokuto and he let out a laugh as Bokuto crashed his cart into the side of a wall in the game they were playing.

"I do want to date him, but I don't know how to make that happen. It's not easy, you know. Akaashi is just unattainable," Bokuto mumbled as he tried his best to catch back up to Kuroo in the game. It wasn't likely to happen, but he was certainly trying his hardest.

That was when there was a knock at the door. "Yeah, it's open," Kuroo called out and continued to focus on the game. Bokuto looked back at the door, wondering if it was really safe to let someone into the house without going to the door.

The moment the door opened up and revealed Kenma, though, Bokuto was relieved and he looked back to the game. So _that_ was why Kuroo didn’t go to the door. He knew it had to be Kenma. "Sorry, I don't think I can stay long. Someone's coming over to my house and I have to be there."

"Who is it?" Kuroo asked before he stuck out his tongue and leaned forward, completely focused on the game. Kenma walked over to the couch, tuning in on the screen. He waited a moment before he shook his head and cleared his throat, noticing that Bokuto was in the room too.

Kenma rubbed the back of his head. "Oh, Bokuto, hi," Kenma said, ignoring Kuroo's question for a moment. He looked back and forth between the screen and the two boys on the couch before he sighed. "It's Akaashi. I can just leave and we will talk over at my house."

Both Kuroo and Bokuto looked back at Kenma when he told them who it was. They lost all interest in the video game and they let their characters drive completely off course. "He... he's coming over? Here?" Bokuto asked. His face had blanched out and it had stilled, as if he didn't know what to do.

Nodding slowly, Kenma cringed a bit. "He doesn't have to come _here_. He doesn't know you are here right now, I don't think. Unless you told him. But he just wanted to talk and I invited him over," Kenma said as he walked around the couch and sat in between Kuroo and Bokuto. "I'll just leave when he gets here and go back to my house."

"No, he can... he can come here," Bokuto said slowly and he turned back to the game, huffing a little. Bokuto wasn't sure that he wanted to see Akaashi right now, but he also wasn't sure why he didn't want him to come over. Bokuto wasn't upset with Akaashi, he wasn't mad at him for any reason. He was just frustrated with his own thoughts and his own situation with Akaashi at the moment. He didn't need to let this affect his friendship with the boy.

That was when Kenma looked over to Bokuto and he have him a look. "Are you... sure? He doesn't have to come over, you know. I can just leave and-"

"No. Tell him I'm here first, but if he wants to just come here, he can. Just... make sure he knows that I'm here." Bokuto was staring at the screen and he was trying his best to play the game still, but he was failing and still behind Kuroo.

A sigh left Kenma's lips as he stood up. "Okay, he's on his way to my apartment though. So I'll ask him if he wants to come over here," Kenma said as he stretched a bit. He walked back out the door and Kuroo shrugged gently before focusing back in on the game.

There was no way that Bokuto could focus in on the racing game anymore. "So... Akaashi is coming _here_." Bokuto set down his controller and he licked his lips. "Maybe coming over was a bad idea. I wanted to come here to get my mind off these problems. But they just seem to keep multiplying and..." Bokuto sighed as the screen changed to a victory screen for Kuroo and Kuroo set down his own controller and focused on Bokuto. "Maybe I should just go home..."

“You asked for this. Kenma could have left and talked to him at his own house. But you told him to bring Akaashi here.” Kuroo rose an eyebrow to Bokuto. "You're just running, you know. If you leave because Akaashi is coming over, you're just running away. You can do this though, because I know you're strong and brave. I mean, look at those 'ceps on your arms," Kuroo said as he poked Bokuto's bicep and snickered a bit when Bokuto got a bit flustered. He couldn’t see Bokuto’s awkward smile behind the mask, but he could see the way his cheeks were starting to blush.

There was a pause and Bokuto's smile faded slowly. "I guess I can stay. I just... wasn't expecting this when I came over," Bokuto murmured. Kuroo turned off the game console and the TV, then reached over to Bokuto's shoulder and gave it a squeeze.

"You can get through this. Akaashi and Kenma can talk in the living room and we can go to my room, then we can all hang out together. Don't you want to see him anyway? You didn't get to see him at _all_ today," Kuroo said.  
  
It took Bokuto a moment to contemplate, before he let out a sigh and he shrugged. “I’m fine. But yeah, sure, seeing him will be great,” Bokuto said as the smile spread back on his cheeks slowly. It was small, but it was still a smile by rights. Not faked in the slightest. Bokuto genuinely didn’t know how to fake his emotions. “He’s my friend, so I want to see him. He can tell me how practice went. When he gets here, anyway, if he wants to see me.” Bokuto said and he let out an awkward laugh, trying to be fine with all of this. He really wasn’t, but Kuroo would pay attention like he always does and make sure he doesn’t push it too far.

“He will want to see you too. Don’t worry,” Kuroo said as he made sure to put the controllers and remote away for them to find and use again.

As they stood up and went to Kuroo’s bedroom, Kuroo pulled out his cell phone to send a message to Kenma. He wanted to tell the boy that he was more than welcome to walk inside when he was ready, as the door was still unlocked. “So, we need to talk about what’s been going on with you and Akaashi. He hasn’t been picking up on your advances one bit, I’m guessing?” Kuroo asked, before he pocketed his phone.

A blank stare was present on Bokuto’s face. He really had no idea what Kuroo was saying to him right now. “My… my advances? What, you mean when I tell him I think we should date every Thursday?”

That was when Kuroo choked back a bit of a cough. “You _do_ do more than that, don’t you?”

They shared a stare for a few moments before Bokuto shook his head. He was completely clueless at how to do this. He had never had a real crush before, aside from the ones in elementary school, which he didn’t think were real anyway. “I didn’t think I was supposed to. No, I don’t. What else could I possibly do though?” Bokuto asked, feeling a little lost at the moment.

“Bro, you have to show him what he means to you. You have to do something to win him over. Something to impress him. He’s not going to be won over by simple words and your admittance of feelings every week. That’s just a reminder that you’re obsessed with him, and I’m sure he finds that a little weird,” Kuroo said as he rose an eyebrow.

This was probably the last thing that Bokuto needed to hear. But if Kuroo was going to help him try to get Akaashi to agree to a date with him, Bokuto would certainly try anything at all. “So what should I do? Kuroo, I don’t think anything _can_ win Akaashi over. He doesn’t seem to want to budge.”

There was a pause as Kuroo looked towards his door, hearing the front door open and close. Once his attention had gone back to Bokuto, he narrowed his gaze and leaned in close. Bokuto reached for the edge of Kuroo’s bed, fisting the black and red comforter. “You have to do romantic things for him. Buy him things, take him places, offer to do nice things for him. If you start doing that, there’s no way he could possibly turn you down.”

A sparkle gleamed in Bokuto’s eyes as he looked up. The smile came back to his face and he hummed very gently. “Yeah, you think so? Man, I hope not. I would do anything for him, but I’d like him to see that I want to be in a relationship with him!” Bokuto fell back on Kuroo’s bed with an awkward laugh.

Taking a breath, Kuroo leaned back in his desk chair. “Give it time. But start doing romantic things for him, and he will be putty in your hands.”

Bokuto shot up and gave a blank-eyed stare to Kuroo. “I don’t want him to be putty. I want our hands to be together and for us to be together…”

Kuroo couldn’t help but laugh. “I know you do, I know. We just have to make him see that too. He needs to see how great you really are. But we can make that happen. He won’t be able to resist, that’s why he would become-”

“I don’t know, Kenma. He’s just been so strange with me lately. Are you sure… they can’t hear us? I just don’t want Bokuto to overhear what I’m saying. But… anyway. It seems to be a pattern, too. He’s strange with me on Thursdays. That’s it.”

“How is he _strange_ with you, though? Are you sure it’s not just some new personality quirk?”

“I’d know if it were a new personality quirk. Something is up with him. It’s best if I didn’t get involved, but I know that won’t be possible. And he’s been… God, he has a crush on me. I don’t know how to handle that,” Akaashi said.

Bokuto stood up and walked up to the door, and he pressed his head against it, trying to listen a little better.

“Ah man, yeah, that’s tough. How did you find out he has a crush on you?” Kenma said a little apprehensively.

“He’s told me. Every Thursday, he ‘reminds’ me that he likes me.”

“And you, what, don’t want to be with him?” Kenma asked.

There was a bit of a pause and Bokuto’s heart thundered in his chest. If he didn’t get the correct answer, it would break him.

Akaashi let out a sigh. “He’s our team captain. If something happened between us, it would drag the team down. I just don’t think we should get involved. He’s… nice and all, and I can’t pretend that I don’t notice how attractive he is, but… I’m not even sure of my own sexuality. I really just don’t think it’s the best idea for us to get involved…”

There it was. Bokuto pushed off from the door and he looked down at his shoes. Akaashi didn’t want to get involved? That saddened Bokuto greatly and it caused his chest clench tightly. “I’m sorry, man,” Kuroo murmured as he put his hand on Bokuto’s shoulder. “But you shouldn’t give up. Maybe he will see you in a whole new light once you get started on making those romantic gestures!”

Kuroo clapped Bokuto on the back and he rubbed the planes of his shoulders for a moment before he pulled back. Bokuto tried his best to fake a smile, but he wasn’t sure that he could. “Maybe I should just…” He couldn’t even finish the sentence. It was hard for him to comprehend everything and his head couldn’t hold onto all of this new information. “He doesn’t want to get involved. So I shouldn’t keep bothering him to try…” Bokuto walked back to Kuroo’s bed, falling hard backwards to sit down. His shoulders sagged and he couldn’t look up to meet Kuroo’s eyes.  
  
But it didn’t seem that Kuroo was going to give Bokuto any space. Kuroo had taken a seat next to Bokuto and started to talk to him. But Bokuto really wasn’t listening right now. His mind wouldn’t let him. “Bro, we will figure something out. You can’t just give up on your feelings of him. I doubt they will just go away, unless you try.”

“Maybe I _should_ try then.”

“Is that really what you want?”

Bokuto froze, his mouth hanging open as he tried to gather his own thoughts on all of this. Finally, Bokuto swallowed, his hands going to the top of his head and he balanced it between his palms. “I don’t know what I want. I want _him_. I want to spend all of my time with him lately. But… he doesn’t want that. I want whatever is going to make him happy.”

There was a pause between the two boys. Kuroo couldn’t get Bokuto to look up at him, no matter how he tried. But he thinks he can understand how Bokuto is feeling. It can’t be easy, that’s the one thing he did know. “What if he just doesn’t know what is going to make him happy? Kou, Akaashi even said that he finds you attractive. You have to show him that it’s worthwhile to be in a relationship with you.”

It seemed that those words got the gears turning in Bokuto’s mind. He slowly lifted his gaze and he finally met Kuroo’s eyes, the tears brimming behind them heavily. “But I have been telling him I like him every Thursday. What else can I do?”

Snickering, Kuroo patted a hand against Bokuto’s shoulder. “There’s a lot that you can do. I can help you with this. You just have to listen to everything I tell you to do, okay? Not just part of what I tell you to do, like you did last time.”

“Huh? I _did_ listen to you last time and this is what happened!”

Kuroo let out a sigh, deep and frustrated. “Just make sure you listen _this_ time. I promise it will help. But it won’t be immediate, okay? It might take a while. Promise me that you won’t run away when it doesn’t work after one or two weeks.” Kuroo rose an eyebrow and he smiled to Bokuto, who was smiling back at Kuroo and he had nodded gently.

“I’ll listen to you. I trust you,” Bokuto said with a sad smile. He was still going to try, simply because he trusted Kuroo. But he also wasn’t ready to give up his crush. He wasn’t ready to let this disappear completely, because deep down, he really felt like they were meant to be.

With a chuckle, Kuroo stood up from the bed and he went towards the door. It seemed to have gotten quiet in the living room, so Kuroo thought it was pretty safe for the two of them to go out there. “Ready to go see him?”

“Never, but let’s go,” Bokuto said as he stood from the bed himself. He wasn’t sure how these next few weeks were going to go, but he sure as hell was going to try.

He didn’t want to let Akaashi go. He wasn’t ready to let him go.

So Bokuto wasn’t going to let him go.


End file.
